Snow day: Impact of storm in Windsor-Essex, closures and cancellations

With the region under a winter storm warning, school buses in Windsor-Essex were cancelled Wednesday morning, other services have also been impacted due the heavy snow.

Environment Canada says up to 30 centimetres of snow is possible between Wednesday and Friday.

Schools:

The Windsor-Essex Student Transportation Services announced busses would not be running at 5:40 a.m. Wednesday.

Schools remained open in both the Greater Essex County District School Board and the Windsor-Essex Catholic District School Board.

“Based on what was being predicted they decided that it was the right call," WECDSB communications coordinator Stephen Fields says. 

Fields explains students and families are notified as soon as information on bus cancellations or school closures is available.

“Transportation has spotters that go on the road first thing in the morning and usually by about 5:30 a.m. they’ve made the decision about whether or not buses are going to be running, so we’ll just have to wait and see tomorrow morning what the situation is,” he says.

Fields notes it would take extreme circumstances for schools to close thereby forcing a complete transition to in-person learning, reiterating a lot of coordination goes into ensuring all students have proper devices.

“If we know for sure that transportation is cancelled and if we have to make any other operational moves then we’ll notify people as soon as we get that information.” Fields adds. “It would have to be a really significant amount of snowfall and it would have to be a case where the roads are really, really treacherous.”

In Chatham-Kent, the Lambton Kent District School Board says buses in Zones 1-7 are cancelled Wednesday due to inclement weather. School buses in Zone 8 are running as normal.

All elementary schools are open to students.

If buses are cancelled for the bus zone in which the school is located, all LKDSB secondary students who attend that school will engage in remote learning on that day.

Be Prepared:

Several power outages and flickering lights were reported across the region Wednesday morning.

ENWIN officials believe localized freezing rain before snow started falling was the cause.

“It was very heavy ice secretion on some of the equipment,” said Jim Brown, vice president of hydro operations. “Snow is a lot less impactful than the freezing rain. It was definitely related to the ice buildup.”

Officials with The Canadian Red Cross say storms like the one currently over the region serve as reminder to be prepared for any extreme weather event.

“Whether it’s a snow storm or flooding it’s crucial,” disaster management specialist Guy Lepage tells CTV News. “You have to think ahead to be totally independent for 72 hours because the cavalry is not going to come because they’ll be busy dealing with the power outages, blocked roads, other emergencies.”

Lepage suggests everyone have an emergency plan that includes an emergency kit, filled with essential items that can sustain you for several days on short notice.

“You’d be surprised how many people have an electric can opener if the power goes out you’ve got a pantry full of canned goods that you can’t get to,” he says.

Lepage suggests medication, cash, clothes and food be in an easy to locate travel bag.

“If you’re told you have to evacuate, now is not the time to start thinking oh what do I need to bring with me,” he says.

Service delays and closures:

The Town of Tecumseh plans to continue Tecumseh Transit Services for the balance of Wednesday and is reminding riders that delays may occur as road conditions continue to decline.

Transit services will not be operating Thursday, Fec. 3. Services are expected to resume by Friday as the town monitors weather and road conditions throughout the storm and will announce any necessary changes as soon as possible.

The Essex-Windsor Solid Waste Authority (EWSWA) says Lakeshore residents can expect a delay in recycling collection due to icy road conditions. Residents are asked to keep their bins outside overnight for them to be collected in the morning.

The City of Windsor is closings its recreation facilities, museums and libraries following regular programming Wednesday night until 3:30 p.m. on Thursday due to the weather.

A news release from the city says the closure will delay all aquatics and recreation programming and other facility usage on Thursday.

The mobile vaccination clinic that was planned for Thursday at Forest Glade Arena has also been cancelled.

“The closures and cancellations are being shared now in an effort to allow residents time to plan for tomorrow and to ensure snow clearing crews can have sites prepared safely for the evening programming,” the news release said.

Should there be further closures, the city will provide updates on social media and its website.

- With files from CTV Windsor's Chris Campbell